Overview
- Rivera Varela was added to the FBI’s wanted list on December 11 with a reward of up to $245,000 for information leading to his arrest and conviction.
- U.S. authorities allege he helped direct a long-running timeshare fraud that targeted American owners in Mexican resort hubs such as Puerto Vallarta.
- Investigators say the scheme used callers posing as attorneys, real-estate agents or government representatives to extract upfront fees from victims.
- The FBI and OFAC report that proceeds were laundered and used to fund CJNG operations, including drug trafficking and weapons purchases.
- Authorities also link him to high-profile violence in 2020, including the attack on Omar García Harfuch and the killing of former Jalisco governor Aristóteles Sandoval, while Mexico’s UIF froze his accounts in 2021.